"Dissimulation". UN rejects Russian proposal to ban weapons in space
The UN Security Council has rejected a Russian resolution to ban the deployment of weapons in space, with Washington accusing Moscow of launching a satellite with weapons capabilities last week.
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Monday’s vote ended in a 7-7 tie, with US allies voting against and Russia’s backers in favor, while Switzerland abstained.
The resolution thus failed to get the nine votes needed for approval, as did a similar proposal put forward last month by Washington and Tokyo that sought to ban space-based weapons.
“The culmination of a Russian disinformation and diplomatic deception campaign is the text that we have before us,” said US Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood.
The United States has accused Russia of seeking to put weapons in space and said that according to its intelligence, Moscow last week launched a satellite with weapons capabilities.
Russia’s UN ambassador denied that his country is trying to deceive the world. Backed by several nations, including China, Vassily Nebenzia called the vote “a moment of truth for our Western colleagues.”
“If they fail to support this, then they will clearly demonstrate that their main priority remains to keep the way open for the militarization of outer space,” the Russian diplomat said.
In 1967, six years after the Soviet Union and the United States first put humans in space, the two countries and the United Kingdom signed a treaty declaring that outer space was a global commons that should be used only for peaceful purposes.
“That was an important element in preventing conflict,” said Paul Meyer, a former Canadian ambassador for disarmament and a fellow at the Vancouver-based Outer Space Institute.
The treaty has become even more important, Meyer argued, as more nations have gained access to space. About a dozen countries have the ability to launch spacecraft, and about 80 have their own satellites, as do private companies.
All of that could be put at risk by a military conflict in space, which could disable vital systems that billions of people around the world rely on, the former diplomat warned.
“We have this very negative, adversarial dynamic between the major space powers that seems to be more about scoring points off their adversaries than it is about engaging in constructive dialogue,” Meyer lamented.
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